The end of the Chicago Bulls’ season on Friday may have given some fans a sense of deja vu.
For the second straight season, the Bulls were in the bottom tier of the play-in tournament ladder. And for the second straight season, the team won their 9-10 play-in matchup only to lose to the Miami Heat in the battle for the 8th seed.
The experience may also be starting to feel like deja vu for DeMar DeRozan.
DeMar DeRozan Speaks Out After Yet Another Early Chicago Bulls Exit
The Bulls lost 112-91 to the Heat in a one-sided affair at Kaseya Center in Miami, Fla.
After the game, DeRozan spoke candidly about the process of starting over another season from scratch. He likened the experience to climbing a mountain — going back down only to go back up. But DeRozan clearly wants to be better be equipped to be one of the last ones standing on the mountain come season’s end.
“The next time I play a game will be my 16th season. You realize the window will close for you personally. I ain’t trying to play 25 years or nothing like that. You want to have the opportunity to give everything great in you. The opportunity.”
“My stance on wanting to be here is still the same — but I just want to win. More than anything just have the opportunity and not got to go home and see the first round of the playoffs or second round of the playoffs. It’s just frustrating.”
DeRozan didn’t get much help in the season-ending loss to the Heat. He finished with a team-high 22 points on 8/16 shooting from the floor. His supporting cast of Nikola Vucevic, Ayo Dosunmu, and Coby White combined to shoot just 15/48 from the field.
The Bulls were without DeRozan’s All-Star running mate in Zach LaVine, who was ruled out for the season with a knee injury. But even with LaVine in the fold, the Bulls probably weren’t going to get too far in the postseason.
